'Witch Bottle' found under Virginia highway

[Still Waters]

A glass jug found under the median of Interstate 64 in York County is believed to be a "witch bottle" left by Union soldiers during the Civil War, according to researchers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=2&v=I71w1UR3Xoc&feature=emb_logo

Quote

At first glance, it just looked like a bottle full of junk.

“It was this glass bottle full of nails, broken, but all there, near an old brick hearth,” said Joe Jones, director of the William & Mary Center for Archaeological Research (WMCAR). “We thought it was unusual, but weren’t sure what it was.”

https://www.wm.edu/news/stories/2020/civil-war-era-jug-found-on-highway-median-may-be-rare-witch-bottle.php

 

[rashore]

Witch bottles are so interesting to me. Great find

[Kittens Are Jerks]

Great find given how rare they are in the US.

I read an article recently which theorised that witch bottles were buried underneath hearths (or near chimnerys) because it was believed that witches got into homes through these access points. Urine and pins (or other sharp objects, such as broken glass, thorns, fish hooks and nails) were common items in the bottles as urine was thought to attract witches and that the sharp objects would then trap them.

[hetrodoxly]

That's a soda bottle, i can't see a soldier making it, i suppose the mother or wife of a soldier who'd had the folklore passed down had given it thinking it would protect him.

Edited January 28, 2020 by hetrodoxly